


One Black Coffee

by ewitseva



Category: Subarashiki Kono Sekai | The World Ends With You, TWEWY - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Coffee, Fluff and Humor, M/M, i try very hard to be a decent writer, uhh what else to tag??
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-06
Updated: 2019-05-06
Packaged: 2020-01-25 20:02:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18581602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ewitseva/pseuds/ewitseva
Summary: Joshua has a crush on one of WildKat's most usual customer and has no idea on how to deal with his arising crush.(DISCONTINUED)





	One Black Coffee

_Beep. Beep._

A groan of annoyance and a shift in his position as he attempts to get curled comfortably in his cool blanket again.

_Beep. Beep._

With a wrinkle present on his nose, he sits up himself up and grabs his phone from his nightstand irritably. He thinks to himself, 

_What a wonderful day to wake so early on._

Joshua jabs the green button on his screen and puffs out an annoyed sigh, paying no mind to the contact name. Putting the phone to his ear, he hears for the person on the other end; the one responsible for waking him so damn early. 

_"Joshua?! Oh thank goodness, I thought you wouldn't answer!"_

Eri calling this early on a Friday? Joshua was very much taken aback at her cheery voice popping up at— _what—_ seven in the morning? She always got to work late by a large margin and her excuse was always sleeping in and snoozing for so long that her alarm gave up and turned off by itself.  _Maybe she_  finally _decided to take initiative and wake up early for once._

Joshua responded, his words drooping lazily on each syllable, "I didn't wake willingly, but out of conviction. Also, the beeping of my phone was becoming incessant. Really, I should be thanking you." He heard her mumble out a half-hearted sorry and something about him needing beauty sleep—which, yes, he did—before her chipper mood began to shine again. 

_"Well, if you're done being a jerk, I need you to do something for me. It's kinda important, so listen up buster!"_  her voice said boisterously, exploding Joshua's eardrums and making him bounce up in surprise. 

"A.. favor is what you're asking of me?"

_"Duh! You ask as if you're not the smartest kid in class.."_

Joshua smirked gently, "So then, what's in it for me, hmm Eri? What do I get if I complete your dire task?"

_"Lemme say what it is and maybe I'll reward you. Maybe."_

By this time, the silver blonde boy had gotten up from his bed and began to pull the covers up to make his bed look more neat, phone pressed against his ear uncomfortably with his shoulder. Blinds covered his bedrooms tiny window, blocking any sunlight from outside because god forbid he get sun-burnt in the comfort of his own home. A desk larger than his own bed was piled with papers containing numbers and letters and symbols. Pencils and pens were also running amok, a few on the ground due to Joshua sleeping and dropping them during all-nighters that were beginning to be too frequent. A few journals were open to show detailed and orderly notes, along with a stray calculus book lazily bookmarked onto a page displaying nonsense. Besides the desk, there was a dark blue bean-bag chair that was reminiscent of what a child would sit on to play video games—needless to say, the poor chair was collecting dust.  

It was his small bedroom, in his small apartment, in a big city. Him and his apartment seemed so insignificant, yet, he liked keeping it as tidy as he could—it made him feel more accomplished, more at ease. It wasn't as if he had anyone to show how much of a neat-freak he was anyhow and he preferred it that way.   

_"Okay, look, me and Shiki are going to Shinjuku for a duos competition. Let's just say that the winners get a scholarship to a prestigious fashion institute, so it's, uh, kind of a big deal. But y'know how we work at the same cafè? Remember that? Well-"_

"You want me to take over your shift, don't you?" 

Eri stayed quiet before she rambled out, _"Of course you know what I'm gonna ask, the mind-reader you are. But seriously, I'd really appreciate if you took over for me. I know you don't have work on Friday's, so I thought you'd be the most likely to be able to get here without having to ruin your schedule. Luckily, Boss is willing to let me go if I can find someone who can take my shift. I know you'll probably say no, but I will bow on the ground you walk on if that gets you to say yes."_

Joshua laughed at her last comment and—with a soft and genuine voice— said, "Alright, what time do you get in today?"

 

-

 

A cool and breezy spring morning; the perfect time to lay down in the grass and look up at the clouds move effortlessly across the sky. Yet here Joshua was, inside on a beautiful day. Since he had gotten to work, he had been standing behind a long wooden counter serving complicated coffee orders and dealing with constant coffee spills thanks to drowsy people going to work themselves and not paying attention on how they were grabbing their cup. He didn't really mind much, it was a favor for Eri and though a bit inconvenienced by the coffee spills, he understood where the tired businessmen were coming from. Never before had he seen WildKat so busy— _("No wonder she gets here so late..")_ —that he was constantly being kept on his toes as if he were a kangaroo ready to strike. At first, it wasn't so straining and he was even enjoying some of the attention he was getting; mostly in the form of compliments surrounding his efficiency and customer service. Some were even about his appearance, which usually left him feeling that nothing could or would stop him. Unfortunately, that same thinking was the reason for his downfall.

Soon, more and more customers came in at around ten o'clock. By then, he was struggling to maintain all his orders in order and was even feeling a bit overwhelmed. At about twelve o'clock, he thought he was going to be worked to death. Nothing was going right anymore and he and his fellow workers—Sota and Ai—were chasing each other up and down to complete as many orders as they could before the next long string of people flooded in through the door. It all was going to make his head fry and he was getting exasperated with all the customers talking about their petty lives and about how hard they worked; Joshua always rolled his eyes at these types of customers whenever they weren't looking. If he was going to be honest, they would probably be better off going to Starbucks and getting a cup of coffee for half the price— _Certainly would save me some sanity from this utter nonsense_. He couldn't stand another complaint about how expensive the coffee was or how some customers had the _audacity_ to loudly _tsk_ at him and act as if it were all his fault that their wallet couldn't magically have more yen. He was so annoyed that he almost snapped back at a customer for asking for a remade latte, which he did, after a few seconds of faking a kind smile to calm his nerves and successfully making the girl who had ordered blush. 

After that scenario, he had to take a few minutes to calm his head a bit. 

Although his two other co-workers tried to cheer him up—though even they seemed a bit distraught—he simply tuned them out with his back facing everyone and continued refilling the coffee machine and continued to serve out trays of hot espresso and continued to fake pretty smiles for the customers so they wouldn't complain about the employees being soulless.  _Eri seriously is going to have to pay me back when she returns._

Joshua continued this manual labor for what felt like an eternity before there was just one hour left of their shift. Him and his co-workers _had_ gotten a lunch break, but even that didn't seem relaxing considering they would have to go back to the cafe in a matter of thirty minutes; back to the caffeine-filled hellhole. This last hour was different; it was almost felt peaceful. With the clouds partially covering the sky and the background sound of mindless chatter of the few customers who were in at the moment, Joshua was able to breathe comfortably again. To inhale and exhale without having an order shoved down his throat the second he did. Even the coffee he had hated just a few hours ago was becoming more soothing with its refined aroma wafting about. He sat down in front of the counter, looking outside casually and people-watching everyone who passed in front of the glass door.

"Sorry guys, but I need to bounce; gotta date with Nao and she'll probably kill me if I'm late," called Sota from the backroom, pulling off the apron he had worn all day and stuffing it into his backpack. Ai, who was currently cleaning and polishing the long counter in the front responded, "M'kay mister mister, me and Josh will do the sweeping stuff for ya. Go have fun with Nao-Nao now!" Joshua turned to Ai and looked at her with the face of practiced scowl, his eyes wide open as if he were being scandalized.

"I am?"

"Obviously you dummy! We're not gonna let rats infest this place! That would be, like, totally gross," Ai spluttered out, appalled at the mental image she had given herself. Joshua sighed as Sota chuckled and waved them goodbye before promptly leaving, the door making a soft jingling noise. 

Ai waved an energetic goodbye to him as did Joshua, though it was done unconsciously. A moment passed before Ai puckered her lips softly, placing her hand on her hip—wet rag still in hand—and commented, "Well then.. I wanna get the hell outta here, so let's, like, hurry up and clean before.. Annnd here comes another person. Grreeaat."

Since Joshua hadn't been people-watching for the last few minutes, he hadn't noticed anyone coming in or passing by. Without even looking up, he stood up to go behind the counter to get ready for the customers order of whatever they were going to get. He began refilling the coffee machine methodically and spoke to Ai,

"I'll take care of this one. Just get ready to close after this one, god knows that we want to leave this place once that clock hits four."

Ai nodded curtly, slapped the rag onto the counter, and ran off into the backroom to grab a broomstick that would inevitably be dragged behind her. The jingling bell on the door made it's usual high-pitched ring, revealing an orange haired boy standing at the door. Joshua turned his head a little to inspect the boy further. 

The boy had a hair color like no other, an uncommon one that Joshua had never seen before. It was bright orange and almost looked dyed; it was _that_ vibrant. Not only was it vibrant, but it was messy. The spikes of hair pointed out every which way and didn't seem to have been combed in days. Dark clothing hung on his slim person, a jacket lazily tossed on with a black graphic t-shirt right under it. He wore ordinary pants, the only thing making them stand out from being generic blue jeans he always saw was a faded red patch at the knee; it was obvious that he threw it into the laundry a multitude of time to get rid of the stain as best he could. Black sneakers squeaked on the polished wood floor, the laces barely missing the floor in every step he took. For accessories, he adorned purple headphones around his neck. Joshua perked his eyebrows at his appearance—it was so casual. Usually, at this time on a Friday, people were off to parties or shopping with friends. They always wanted to look their best in front of everyone. _He_ seemed so unlike the rest of the trend-following people in Shibuya; it was a shock. Even his face was different. All of his facial features were sharp and distinct, his vivid blue eyes being the most apparent feature. 

The boy sat down a couple seats away from Joshua quietly, not doing much as far as Joshua could see. Joshua finished refilling the coffee machine with coffee beans a few moments later and went over to the boy. 

Joshua spoke out, asking the question he had been asking all day, "What will it be for today?"

The boy seemed to be distracted for a few moments before perking up and shaking his head, "Huh? Oh, uh, sorry.. I'll just have one black coffee." He placed his order and glanced over to the side when he did, avoiding any eye contact with Joshua. Joshua couldn't think about it for too long as he began preparing the boy's simple enough drink, one of the simplest he had gotten in the entire day. 

"Quite late for a strong drink," said Joshua in a mellow tone. The boy, distracted again about something, shrugged at Joshua's statement. Slowly, he pointed at the dark bags around his eyes. Joshua quickly got the memo and blatantly responded,

"Ah."

The rumble of the coffee machine and the broom making sweeping noises in the background kept the silence between the two not seems too awkward. 

"Hey you," said the boy in a voice that somehow made the comment not sound forceful. Joshua looked over at him to signal that he was listening and the boy continued with the same tone and face—stoic, "Sorry if this is a weird question but is, um, Eri back yet?"

Joshua tilted his head in confusion as he grabbed a porcelain cup and poured black coffee into it. 

"Eri who? Sorry, but that information is between me and my co-workers, I don't know who she is," Joshua responded quickly. It was basic protocol to not tell _anyone_ the whereabouts or schedule of his fellow co-workers. The boy pursed his lips at the response before nodding understandingly, "Yeah, I guess that makes sense. I could be some creep, huh?"

Joshua served the cup of steaming coffee to the orange haired boy and just responded, "Hmm, definitely a possibility."

The boy looked at Joshua quizzically as he took a sip of his coffee. Under his stare, Joshua held an interested face before he walked off to pick up the trays with empty cups on them from the round tables decorating the interior of the cafe. Picking them up, he delivered them to the sink to be cleaned by him once this boy left. 

"You're new here aren't you?" the boy sipped his coffee again, "I've never seen you work here." At this, Joshua smiled a little. He'd known this boy only for a couple of minutes yet he had already made Joshua smile. Quite an achievement as no one ever made him smile until they were well-acquainted. He didn't necessarily find what the boy had said humorous, but it was nice to see a customer notice things like this; it made him feel acknowledged as a person and not just some under-payed employee. 

Joshua voiced back, "I don't usually work here Friday's, I'm just stepping in for a shift today." The boy nodded and sipped his coffee. His lips didn't stray away from the cup for a long while and Joshua wondered if he was getting enough oxygen. After chugging for a good ten seconds, he placed down an empty cup. He didn't even seem to notice the concerned face Joshua was making.

"Okay, not to be dramatic, but that was fucking good," said the boy with a smile; the first actual emotion he had shown the entire time he had been at the cafè. It was a bold statement that made Joshua widen his eyes in surprise. Joshua was dumbstruck before he slowly shook head and urged, "No, no, you certainly weren't being such. I'm quite glad you enjoyed the coffee I made; it _is_ expected of me." At this, the boy got up and put down the desired amount of yen to pay for his drink, Joshua noticing he had actually just underpaid him. The boy remained stagnant and stayed at the counter, his gaze upon Joshua with the utmost curiosity. Joshua was very tempted to say something along the lines of _See something you like?_   but decided against it as he would probably make this customer never come back to the shop if he did. The boy swiftly rammed his hands into his pant pockets.

After a moment, he commented gently, "You from America? Joshua is sure to hell not a Japanese name."

Joshua peered downwards at his name tag, displaying the nickname he had used for years now. It was a nickname he had forced to everyone he knew to call him by; he despised the name Yoshiya. It was an unpleasant name.  

Trying to keep up the friendly small talk with this unique character, Joshua stated, "How observant of you. But I must say that I am not from there. Joshua was a nickname used by my parents when I was young. Needless to say, it definitely stuck for a while, mostly because my actual name is awful and I didn't want to be referred to as 'Yoshiya.'"

The orange haired boy frowned. "Huh. That's not okay. Are you insecu-"

"Not at all," Joshua smiled slyly as he took the wrong amount of money and the boy's empty cup from off the counter. "Enough about my name. What may yours be?"

The boy happily played along with Joshua's change in subject as he responded, "Oh, it's Neku."

Joshua paused for a few seconds at the sink before he fell into a fit of giggles, his hand flying up to his mouth in an attempt to cover them up. Neku looked at him with a deeply confused expression on his face; he was staring at Joshua as if he had just shot him. Joshua couldn't stop himself from snickering at this new information and even Ai seemed a little nervous for what he had planned. A second later, Joshua made a cat paw with his hand and said in a ditzy voice,

"Nya nya!"

The cafè became dead quiet, the only thing heard was the _pfft_ noise Ai was making from some corner of the café. 

Neku stared at him as his face became one of exasperation and a scowl, announcing slowly, "... And this is where I take my leave."

Joshua put down his paw hand and began to grin mischievously at Neku. Neku sighed as he rolled his eyes as he turned on his heel and began walking towards the entrance.

Joking tauntingly, Joshua called out, "Have a purrfect day kitty cat! Be sure to come back soon!" Neku made sure to slam the door as hard as he could on his way out. 

Joshua continued laughing, the look of Neku's disappointed face always present in his mind to keep the giggles coming. Even after Ai had finished sweeping the floor and putting the broom back into the backroom, Joshua was still chuckling. She too was grinning stupidly.

"Josh, you didn't have to, like, do that to him! He's the only chill person who comes by this lame ass place. I don't wanna scare the usual off because you were being a huge prick."

Joshua giggled himself silly as he spoke back giddily, "Oh, he's going to come back alright, he was practically eye-fucking me the entire time he was here." 

Ai burst out laughing at Joshua's idea, making Joshua immediately stop laughing. He didn't like being taunted or laughed at. Unfortunately, Ai delivered exactly that as she laughed hysterically, "You are, um, sooo stupid! He's a toootal emo, y'know how those guys are! And what I know about 'im from Eri, he's a shut-in. Which makes sense 'cause he's the color of mayonnaise," Ai took a much needed breath before lilting jokingly, "Oh my god, don't say you catching feelings Kiryu! We don't wanna heartbroken boy running after one that doesn't even care 'bout anyone, eh?" 

This was all very funny to her, but Joshua glared at her while she cackled like a witch. 

Joshua stiffened as his fingers clawed at the corners of the sink, threatening the metal sink to bend under the pressure. He was suddenly furious at Ai, angry at her for making fun of him for saying a simply little joke. He did it all the time to other people—poked fun at them and teased them—yet, he himself could not stand being the butt of the joke. He didn't like being treated like a coward, and as hypocritical as it sounded, he just hated being an underling for someone else's sake. He huffed at her incessant laughing and stormed off to the backroom to get away from her high-pitched jeers. He plopped himself down next to his work bag, making himself look busy in case Ai came in to laugh at him some more. He was angry at Ai for making fun of him, his harmless joke, and Neku. 

Joshua paused suddenly as if a remote for his brain had pressed the off button. _Wait. W-what? What the hell? Did I really just think that? The.. hell? Did it get warm in here..?_ The silver blonde boy looked around to see if Ai had changed the temperature to mess with him. To no avail, nothing in the room had been changed and Ai seemed to be done laughing at him. _Am I.. Warm?_ Joshua shook his head furiously before he put his fingertips onto his cheek. It was warm and his ears were tingling in a fuzzy way that made him feel something he never had before. Was he getting defensive about.. _him_? 

Joshua scrunched his face up. Entertaining the thought was complete rubbish! Of course he wasn't! He was just intrigued in the Neku appeared and acted, nothing else. Why would he get defensive over someone like him? It's not like his gazes were the most comforting he had ever received and that his attention to little details made Joshua smile and the way he had played along with his joke made Joshua fall into a rage of giggles.

He slapped himself mentally. Of course not. He wasn't going to let his mask break ever again. 


End file.
